Race Info

Here’s the alternative to bumping elbows in a crowded big-city road race. This fall, let the scenic trails through Milwaukee’s beautiful park system give you adventure and freedom to run.

The Marathon course is a USATF-certified and a Boston Marathon qualifier. This will be one of the last races to qualify for Boston before its mid-September cutoff date.

All events will take runners on a unique journey on the scenic trails along the South Shore of Lake Michigan. Runners will experience the Oak Leaf Trail and the Seven Bridges Hiking Trail. The course will start and finish at Sheridan Park in Cudahy and also go through four other Milwaukee County Parks: Warnimont Park, Grant Park, Bay View Park, and South Shore Park. The majority of the course is on the flat, paved Oak Leaf Trail, but the portions on the hiking trails will be a little more challenging. Still, this is the perfect race for beginning or inexperienced trail runners.

AWARDS

Awards & Swag

The top 3 male and female overall finishers in the Marathon, Half Marathon and 50k will receive special awards. The top 3 male and female finishers in the following age groups will also receive awards: 19 and Under, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70 and Over. All finishers in these three events will receive a medal when they cross the finish line.

All awards must be picked up at the race at the Results table. There will not be an awards ceremony and they will not be mailed out afterward.

All runners will receive a high-quality technical shirt and all finishers will receive a unique medal.

IMPORTANT: Awards will be available on race day – No awards will be mailed out, however age group winners are able to arrange a pick up before 10/1 by emailing info@runmilwaukee.com.

PARKING

There is plenty of street parking in the neighborhood west of Lake Drive near the Cudahy High School Football Stadium (located at Lake Drive and Munkwitz Avenue). Sheridan Drive will be closed for parking.

COURSE

Section 1 – Sheridan Park to Grant Park (5.3 miles). This section includes a small amount of road at the start and then the rest is paved trail until the turnaround around Mile 4.2 in Grant Park. Then it will take Grant Park Drive about 1.1 miles north to the Seven Bridges Trailhead. It is mostly flat but there are a couple of rolling hills. There is an aid station 2 miles from Sheridan Park on the Oak Leaf Trail and another one at the turnaround.

Section 2 – Seven Bridges Hiking Trail to Sheridan Park (4.2 miles). This section is a mixed bag of terrain, with dirt trails, wooden bridges, rocks and even some steps. The trail will veer to the north and will take runners through a grassy section near Grant Park Picnic Area #7 before getting back on the Oak Leaf Trail for a short distance, and then picking up the Forked Astor Hiking Trail in Warnimont Park. There is a maze of paths back there so runners will have to pay close attention to the course markings. Although the Forked Astor is mainly flat, it can be slow due to the many winding paths. The hiking trails come to an end just south of the Cudahy Gun Club and at that point runners will get back on the Oak Leaf Trail and follow that into Sheridan Park, where aid station 3 is located.

Section 3 – Oak Leaf Trail from Sheridan Park to South Shore Beach (6.8 miles, out-and-back). The entire section consists of the paved Oak Leaf Trail and has some rolling hills, but none very steep. Aid station 4 is located about 2 miles south of Sheridan Park, right off Lake Drive in St. Francis. Aid station 5 is another 1.5 miles down the trail at South Shore Beach (the turnaround point). All participants will cover sections 1 and 2 once. The marathon and 50k runners will traverse those sections twice, and the 20-milers will do part of it a second time. Section 3 will be covered in its entirely by the 50k runners, the marathoners and the 20-milers, while the half marathoners will turn around at aid station 4 and head back to Sheridan Park.

There will be two sections of the course: a 9.5-mile loop to the south from Sheridan Park to Grant Park and back; and a 6.8-mile out-and-back to the north from Sheridan Park to South Shore Park. Runners in all four events will start with the 9.5 loop to the south. Details of each course are as follows:

Marathon

9.5-mile loop to the south, 6.8-mile out-and-back to the north, 9.5-mile loop to the south, plus extra mileage in Sheridan Park to finish.

$70 February 1 to June 30; $80 July 1 to August 30; $90 on race-day. Capacity is 300.

Half Marathon

9.5-mile loop to the south, 3.6-mile out-and-back to the north.

$50 February 1 to June 30; $60 July 1 to August 30; $70 on race-day. Capacity is 500.

50k

9.5-mile loop to the south, 6.8-mile out-and-back to the north, 9.5-mile loop to the south, 5.4-mile out-and-back to the north.

$80 February 1 to June 30; $90 July 1 to August 30; $100 on race-day. Capacity is 200.

20 Mile Training Run

9.5-mile loop to the south, 6.8-mile out-and-back to the north, 3.7-mile loop to the south.

$20 February 1 to August 30; $30 on race-day. Capacity is 200.

Note: 20-mile training run will not be timed and there will not be awards. This event is meant to be a training run for people running in fall marathons like PNC Milwaukee Marathon, Fox Cities, Milwaukee Lakefront, Detroit, Chicago or Twin Cities. The advantage of paying $20 and doing our event instead of going out on your own: a fancy shirt, refreshments on the course, and a competitive race-day experience.

AID STATIONS

There will be 5 aid stations:

1 - Oak Leaf Trail near the north entrance to Grant Park

2 - Grant Park (north of the clubhouse)

3 – Sheridan Park

4 - Oak Leaf Trail along Lake Drive near the Stark Investments complex in St. Francis

5 - South Shore Beach

The furthest distance between aid stations will be 2.5 miles. Many of the aid stations can be used multiple times depending on the location and the event. The stations will have water, sports drink and other nutrition products to be announced.

SCHEDULE

Schedule of events

Packet Pickup – 5AM to 7AM, Sheridan Park Picnic Area #1

Start of 50k – 6AM

Start of Marathon – 6:30AM

Start of 20-Mile Training Run – 6:30AM

Start of Half Marathon – 7:00AM

All races are held on September 3rd, and will start in Sheridan Park, near the intersection of Sheridan Drive & Layton Avenue.

All runners must be off the course by 2PM

ONLINE REGISTRATION

Please note, online registration closes at 11:59PM CST on Wednesday, August 30, 2017. Race day registration will be available from 5AM to 7AM at Sheridan Park Picnic Area #1.

ADVANCE PACKET PICKUP

If you do not want to pick up your packet on race-day, you may pick up at Oak Creek Performance Running Outfitters on Saturday, September 2. 7956 Main Street, Oak Creek - 10:30AM to 4:00PM.

Charity Sponsors

We will be raising money for the Friends of Grant Park, Friends of Sheridan Park and the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of American (Wisconsin Chapter). These are worthy organizations and we are honored to partner with them to further their missions. To find out more about each organization click on the links below:

COURSE

Course Rules

Pacing from non-registered participants is not allowed.

The entire course will be open to the public. Please be mindful of cyclists, strollers, hikers, roller-bladers and people walking dogs. If you are coming up from behind them you may want to communicate your presence.

Do not throw any garbage on the trails. You could be disqualified if you are seen littering. There will be plenty of trash receptacles near the aid stations.

Please do not leave the trails for any reason.

There will be medical personnel at every aid station. We will also have volunteers stationed at other points on the course.

The course will be marked with signs and arrows. Please pay attention to where you are going.

Headphones are allowed but discouraged. You will need to be able to hear at all times due to the potential for cyclists or other runners coming up from behind you.

There will be a spot for drop bags in Sheridan Park near the finish line. All participants will pass this spot at least once during the race (marathon runners will pass it twice, and 50k runners three times). You can place anything you’d like in these bags and they will be accessible when you cross this portion of the course.

TRAVEL INFORMATION

REFUND/TRANSFER POLICY

We do not allow refunds or transfers of entries to other people. If you would like to switch from one distance to another, please contact us (info@runmilwaukee.com) at least one week before the race and we can accommodate that request.

Join Together

We will need several helping hands to make the Lake Michigan Marathon run smoothly. Volunteer opportunities include help at packet pick up, course marshals, water station workers, finish line assistance, and several more. Don’t wait, join the team!